In transporting products in the enclosed cargo space of trucks and containers, inflatable air bags are used to stabilize the load of the cargo to prevent damage to either the truck or cargo. Variations of this practice have appeared in the patent literature.
For example U.S. Pat. No. 5,730,564 to Howlett discloses a cargo supporting air bag having inflation indicating means and a method for determining proper inflation of spaced loads.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,263,801 to Keenan et al discloses an airbag for use in a cargo bay of a transport vehicle for stabilizing a cargo of drums or rolls.
In the transportation of perishable products such as fruits and vegetables, the produce is normally packed onto pallets and which are then placed in the cargo space of a refrigerated enclosure such as a truck trailer or container. None of the foregoing references disclosure address the problem of maintaining a uniformly even temperature in a refrigerated cargo space containing refrigerated fruits and/or vegetables.
Uneven temperature can be a problem resulting from a loss or gain of heat through the walls of the cargo hold during shipment. U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,512 discloses an airbag that is positionable between the wall of the container and pallets holding product in the cargo space. The bags are spacers that separate the cargo from the walls of the cargo hold.
However, this disclosure does not address the problem of uneven flow of refrigerated air through the pallets in the cargo chamber. This uneven air flow results in troublesome differences of temperature in various locations of the cargo chamber.